Internal-combustion engine.



E. G. LANCASTER. INTERNAL COMBUSUON ENGINE.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 1.5, 1913.

1,229,761 J Pate nfoed June 12; 1917.

EDWIN GERARD LANCASTER, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

INTERNAL-CQMBUS TION ENGINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented J une '12, 191 *7.

Application filed May 15, 1913. Serial No. 767,801.

To all whom it may conccm 1 Be it known that I, EDWIX GERARD LAN- GASTER, a citizen of the United States of America, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented zuviicw and useful Internal-Combustion Engine, of which the following is a description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming apart of this spe ification, in which similar letters and nu erals of reference refer to similar parts.

My invention relates to internal combustion engines and more particularly to such type thereof as operatein one part 111 accordance with the principle of a two stroke cycle engine and in another part in accordance with the principle of a four stroke cycle engine and the object of my invention is to provide for that part of my engine, operatingin accordance with the vprinclpl'coi a two stroke cycle, at the end of each power Stroke, an ample blast of pure air forscavenging andco'oling purposes and to ntroduce into theysame cylinder innnedrately thereafter, a predetermined amount and quality of explosive mixture.

I obtain this objectby providing better and more ample means than are used in or-' dinary two stroke cycle engines for supplying scavenging blasts as well as explosive charges to that part of iny'engine operating in accordance with the principle of atwo stroke cycle, and especially by providing the other part of my engine. operating in accordance with the principle of a four stroke cycle, with closed crank chambers employed as compressors of air orof. explosive charges or of both. 7 i

In the drawings. i J

Figure 1 is a vertical longitudinal sectlon through my preferred three cylinder-engine;

Fig. 2 is the same section as Fig. 1, partly broken oif and with. the crankshaft 10 turned 180 degrees. y

The engine illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2 comprises two four' stroke'cycle cylinders F and F and one two stroke cycle cylinder T, the pistons of all three cylinders being con nected to a single crankshaft 10 connected in turn by means of gear wheels 9, 9' a connecting rod 11 and a rockershaft. 12' with cams,

13 13 to exhaust valves E, E of the four stroke cycle cylinders F [and F The latter cylinders-are provided in the usual well known way with inlet valves 14, ll and inclose pistons l and P respectively. These pistons are connected to cranks 20 and .21 lie-' cases C, C and (l are connected insolnesuitable way to the cylinders F, F and T and inclose the, cranks 20, 21 and 22 respectively. I is an air inlet into tbecrank case C and I is an inlet for explosive or combustible mixture into "the crank case C. The inlet I is assumed to be connected to a suitable source of explosive and combustible mixture in gaseous form. The crank cases C and C nni y be connected to the crank case C through ports O and 0 provided in the pistons P and I" zcspectively, and through canals 15, 16 and lS'urranged between the cylinder T andthe two cylinders F and F The crank case C may be connected through a port 0 provided in the piston I and through canals 1G andl'f to the cylinder '1. from which tom of the crank case (Rand the deflector (51. for deflecting a current of 'pure'ai'r from the canals 15 and 16 toward the top'of and inside of the hollow piston P The pistons P and P in moving from their inner positlon, indicated in Flg. 1", tOthGlI' outer posit10n,-111(l 1C3l BCl in Fig. 2, compress a charge of explosive mixture and achargeof pure air respectively and deliver these charges into the bottom of the crank case and into the top of the hollow piston'P respectively at the instant that the ports 0 and O registor with the canals-1:8 and 15 respectively. Assuming that each of thethree pistons P, P and P effects an equal displacement during its stroke, the total volume of the three crank cases C, G and CF, not including the yolnme of' thedispla-cement of the three pistons P, P and P is, during the preceding st'rokefiof said three pistons, in-

creased by the diSpla-cemcnt] of theoistons U I and P whereby the total volume is reduced by the difiierence between increase and reduction, 2'. e. by the volume of one piston displacement and that in consequence the total-volume of gaseous contents within the three crankcases of C, G and C is already compressed to some degree at the instant that the two pistons P and P have arrived at the end of their out stroke with the piston P at the end of its instroke. The volume of gases contained in the crank case C is thereafter further compressed by the outstroke of the piston P so that after the exhaust port 19 has been uncovered and a part of the previously burned and expanded'gases have been exhausted from thecylinder .T, a new charge is forced into the latter as soon as a communication between the cylinder T posed betweenthe h'ot waste gases and the 4 the crank case G into the cylinder T and the crank case C is effected by an un- I covering of the port 17 and by a registering of the port 0 with the canallG, as indi- -cated in Fig. 1. As the hollow piston 1? for the greater part, contains only pure compressed air, this air enters through the port 0 into the cylinder'T in advance of the explosive charge following from the bottom of the crank case C The advancing charge, of pure air expels the waste gases from the cylinderT, cools the inside surface of the walls of the latter and bybeing internew explosive charge prevents a premature ignition 0f the latter. The new explosive charge is compressed within the cylinder T by the instroke of the piston I, then ignited connected to the two stroke cycle cylinder and operate as described.

After everydelivery of a new charge from through the canals 16 and 17 the latter are occupied by combustible mixture, a deflector K is' provided between the canals 15 and 16 in such'a way that this combustible mixture is forcedback from the canals 16 and 17 into the crankcase C as soon as and whenever pure air is admitted through'the port 0 and'canal 15, the combustible mixture flowing in advance ofthe pure. air through "the hollow piston P toward the-bottomof crank case C {A check valve 2' may be provided for admitting an explosive mixture into the crankcase C during theinstroke of the piston P lVith this additional device'the gaseous contents of the crankcaseC are kept at a minimum pressure equal or nearly equal to that of the source of'said mixture and the total charge deliveredinto the cylinder T is thus further increased smas to correspond to the.

displacement caused by a stroke ofall three pistons P, P and P However, I do not limit myself to the com v bination of three cylinders as illustrated in Fig. l. The arrangement of three cylinders,

has the advantage that four explosions occur at regular intervals during each two revolutions of the crankshaft,'namely one explosion in each of the two cylinders F and F and two explosions in the cylinder T.

It will be noticed that the pistons P and P of the .two four stroke cycle cylinders have suflicient length .so that canals 15 and 18 are constantly covered except at the time that the ports 0 and O register with saidcanals respectively.

I desire to claim:

combustion cylinders, a crankshaft, two separate closed crankcases each connected to one of said cylinders, two pistons each con nected to said crankshaft, and also operatively connected to one of said two cylinders, means of communication connecting both of said crankc'ases witlrone of said cylinders, said two pistons and said means constructed to deliver charges of gaseous fluid at pre- 1., In an internal coi'nbustion engine, two

determined periods, from both of said crankcases into one of said cylinders,and means for supplying fuel and .air to the other of said cylinders.

2. In an internal combustion engine, two combustion cylinders, one constructed for a 'two stroke and the other for a four stroke thermodynamic cycle, a common crankshaft, two closed crankcaseseach one in connection with one of said cylinders, means of communication, connecting said two crankcases with each other and with the two stroke cycle cylinder, a piston in each of said cylinders, connected to said crankshaft, constructed to deliver, at predeter-. mined eriods, charges of gaseous fluid from both 0 said crankcases to said one of said fuel to the other of said cylinders.

combination of one two stroke cyclecylinder with .twofour stroke cycle cylinders, a closed crankcase connected to each of said four stroke cycle cylinders, a third crankcase connected to'said two stroke cycle cylinder, means of communication connecting said crank cases of said four stroke cycle cylinders with said crankcase of said two st cycle cylinder and the latter to said stroke cyclecylinder, three pistons, on each of said cylinders, and constructed i... liver, in conjunction withsaid means,- 1 odical' charges of gaseous fluid from said four stroke cycle crankcases into said two stroke cycle. crankcase and from the latter into said two stroke cycle cylinder.

4. In an internal combustion engine, two

3. In an internal combustion engine, the

11c cylinders, and means for supplying airand crankcases and with said two stroke cycle combustion cylinder, and pistons operatively connected'to said cylinders and said crankshaft and constructed alternately to es-' tabli sh and interrupt said communications.

5. In an internal combustion engine, two combustion cylinders, a first one constructed to operate at a four stroke and a second one to operate at a two stroke cycle, a crankshaft, a first and a second separate olosedcrankcase connected to said first and to said sec- 0nd cylinder respectively, means of communication between said crankcases and between s'aid'two stroke cycle crankcase and its appertaining cylinder, two pistons operatively connected to said'cylindcrs andcrankshaft and constructed to deliver air at 'predetermined intervals from said first into said second crankcase and explosive gaseous fluid from the latter into its appertaining cylinder.' 1

6. In an internal combustion engine, two

combustion cylinders, one a four stroke cycle and the other a two stroke cycle cylinder, a

separate crankcase for each of said cylinders, a conduit adapted for intermittent communication with each of said crankcases and with said two stroke cycle combustion cylinder and means alternately to establish and intera rupt said communications.

7. In an internal combustion engine, a first and a second four stroke 0 cle combustion cylinder, a two stroke cycle t ird combustion cylinder between said first and said second cylinder, a crankshaft, a first, a second and a third separate closed crankcase connected to said first, second and" third cylinder re spectively, three pistons operatively 0on nected to said cylinders and crankshaft and constructed to deliver air into said third crankcase from said first and a gaseous combustible from said second crankcase at predetermined intervals and to deliver workingcharges from said third crankcase into said .third cylinder at periods intermediate thereto.

In Witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand.

EDWIN GERARD LANCASTER.

"Nitness'esr IRENE PARKER, SAMUEL A. HARRISON. 

